Psychology and mental health

Nausea in bulimic women in response to palatable food

Article Abstract:

Bulimia is characterized by alternating periods of restrictive eating and episodes of binge eating and vomiting. There are currently no effective treatments for this eating disorder and the cause of the condition is unknown. It has been suggested that the disorder involves conditioned nausea that is a learned response to the smell, sight, or taste of particular foods. To further investigate this, 11 women diagnosed with bulimia and 15 normal control subjects were tested for their responses to a palatable sweet food. All of the subjects fasted for 15 hours and were then exposed to the food. Blood tests were performed to measure any changes in plasma arginine vasopressin (AVP), a hormone that is associated with nausea. In addition, each subject completed a self-report; ratings were obtained on the duration and severity of nausea experienced by the subject. Although nausea was reported by subjects in both the control and the experimental group, reactions differed between the two groups in the incidence and severity of the nausea. Seventy-three percent of the bulimics (eight subjects) reported nausea, compared with 27 percent (four) of the control subjects. When baseline and peak plasma levels of AVP were measured, increases in AVP in the bulimic group were significantly higher than among the controls. Similar plasma osmolality and electrolyte levels were measured in both groups, which indicated the increased levels of AVP in the bulimics were not the result of a secondary disturbance. Although the cause of the nausea in the bulimic patients was not established, the results support the theory that nausea in bulimics is a learned response, where an association develops between eating and vomiting. It is suggested that the binge-purge pattern that becomes established in bulimics is, at least in part, a by-product of this learned response. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Depression and bulimia: the link between depression and bulimic cognitions

Article Abstract:

Similarities have been observed in the thought processes involved in depression and bulimia. Depressive cognition is a pronounced characteristic of both disorders. A study of 29 bulimics and 16 normal controls was performed to assess the thought patterns that are common to both conditions. Bulimia is characterized by a spectrum of symptoms involving abnormal thinking, as well as abnormal behavior. Some researchers have speculated that bulimia may be linked to affective disorders, a general category of mental disturbances that encompasses a variety of mood disorders. Levels of depression were measured and the cognitive style of each subject was also analyzed regarding food, weight, and depression. The role of depression was evaluated as an influence on these three factors. Higher rates of depression were recorded in the bulimics than the controls. Regardless of the level of depression measured in the bulimics, significant symptoms that were unrelated to the extent of depression were also observed in this group. When adjustments were made for symptoms of depression, the bulimic group's differences in behavioral and cognitive symptoms were still significant. These results suggest that although bulimics are frequently and significantly depressed, this influence is secondary; other characteristics of this eating disorder make it a distinct condition that is separate from affective disorder. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Prospective analysis of personality and behavioral vulnerabilities and gender influences in the later development of disordered eating

Article Abstract:

An analysis of the eating disorder phenomena, developed at later stages in adolescents over a period of three years, reveals the absence of interoceptive awareness to be the main cause of this disorder. More number of girls are susceptible to eating disorders than boys. Dissatisfaction regarding body build and emotional problems are the major risk factors of the concurrent eating disorder.